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ipsy

At long last (well, a little over a year, to be more precise), I think my love affair with Ipsy is coming to an end. Nothing has changed about the service and I still think it can be a fun way to treat yourself every month, but my makeup collection is expansive. I have reached the point where it is rare for me to receive something I don’t already own in a similar shade and finish. This month even contained two items I very specifically wanted and was very specifically excited to try, but … not because I need it. I was just curious about the formula! While for many people that is the point of beauty subscriptions, I have a humongous backlog of samples that I am never going to use up. I will definitely still be receiving a June bag, but I am actually considering cancelling for July … at least for a little while!

Urban Decay Afterglow Powder Highlighter in “Sin” | RV $9.57. This was one of the products I was most excited to try this month, but also a product that made me realize how little I actually need to continue trying your typical champagne highlight. In the photo below, it’s the third swatch from the top – it’s shimmery and pigmented and really lovely, but it’s simply not a product I need now or anytime soon. The sample alone would likely take me a year to finish.

It Cosmetics Superhero Elastic Stretch Volumizing Mascara | RV $$13.60. This was the second product I was excited to try! The It Cosmetics Superhero Mascara gets consistently great reviews and I look forward to sampling it, but yet again … when will that be? I’m currently working through a mascara stash and have ten I’d like to use up before starting on this one.

JellyPongPong Supercharged Super Intense Eyeshadow Duo in “Electric” | RV $22.95, Full-size. I have been on an overwhelmingly huge eyeshadow kick lately, so I was glad to be receiving this duo. In the photo below, the shades are the top two swatches on bare skin. They don’t look too impressive, but I’ll be trying them over primer before writing them off. The compact they came in is charming, but I do think $22.95 is quite an inflated price. If I’d been able to choose, I would have picked the teal and bronze variation of this duo for a little more contrast.

Cailyn Cosmetics Pure Lust Extreme Matte Tint + Velvet in “Practicable” | RV $19, Full-size. You may recall my previous experience with a Cailyn Cosmetics Extreme Matte Tint, as conveyed in my Lip Hoarder Part Three post which was basically that it’s a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad matte lipstick. “Practicable” was better. Described as a “cinnamon nude”, the shade was much more flattering and the application was a breeze. As you’re applying, it feels like it’s going to be a perfect matte lip paint … but then it dries, and it isn’t. Though better than my first experience, Cailyn’s Matte Lip Tints still dry your lips out so badly they pucker, which is universally unflattering. It’s also impossible to remove – I tried my face wash, a lip scrub, a cleansing oil, and a scrubbing brush, and my lips are still tinted. Shade – beautiful. Product – stay far away.

Adesse New York Gel Polish in “Surfer Girl” | RV $18, Full-size. I love nail polish (obviously, I have a Julep subscription) and I like this shade and the fact that it’s a gel-like finish. My only qualm with receiving this polish is that just last month I received a nail polish in almost the exact same shade from Ipsy. It’s not a big deal and I prefer the Adesse polish to the Defy & Inspire polish, but I’d prefer to diversify my collection.

Total Paid: $10

Total Retail Value: $83.12

That value is wild for a $10 subscription bag, but again, I think some of the values were inflated, particularly on the JellyPongPong shadow duo. I also think $18 is an awful lot to spend on a single polish, but it’s not unheard of – the gorgeous Smith & Cult polishes are also $18 a pop. Regardless, this bag was well worth $10, but it’s just not meeting a need anymore. I’m at a point where I would rather spend more to have exactly what I want than $10 to have a variety of new items to try. I’m sure it’s a pendulum, but for now I plan to pause my Ipsy subscription.

The amount of beauty boxes I receive has decreased quite a bit over the past few months, but Ipsy has done a great job of satiating my desire for cute mail and new products without blowing my budget. April’s Ipsy Glambag was pretty on target for me. I even thought the kitschy little ticket bag was cute and different, though a lot of people have been complaining about it. Different strokes!

This month, my Ipsy bag contained:

Mica Beauty Highlight #3 | RV $13.88, Though pretty and pigmented, I think the loose powder may be too difficult to use as a highlighter, and the shade is a little too rich of a gold to look right on my skintone. I considered keeping it as an eyeshadow, and I think it would work great as one, but I have enough gold shimmer eyeshadows, so I’ll be passing it on.

Skin & Co Truffle Therapy Face Toner | RV $4.05, I could see how this would be the least exciting item to some, but I’ve been hoping to get a toner I could travel with for a few months now. It’s perfect for me!

Ipsy is a $10 per month beauty bag which contains a mix of beauty, haircare, and skincare products that are mostly deluxe samples or full-size. Though it is consistently my favorite of its affordable subscription box competitors (such as Birchbox, Sephora Play!, or Allure), I have mixed feelings about my Ipsy bag this month.My March 2017 Ipsy GlamBag contained:

This month’s GlamBag is pretty blah for me. The eyeshadow is a fine shade, but that brand name reminds me of a creepy fedora-wearing “nice guy” calling someone m’Princess & I truly cannot get over it.

I love all things First Aid Beauty, so I’m pleased as punch to have a sample of their new facial moisturizer. I don’t find it all that different from their Ultra Repair Cream, but this one is sold in a pump bottle, so I’m a fan.

The tarte lip paint fit my profile so I understand why it was sent to me, but I had to pass the shade on to my mom. In spite of how pale it looks in the packaging, it dried much darker and warmer.

The blending brush is nice; I’ve already used it a couple of times and washed it with minimal loss of hairs.

I used to love getting Marc Anthony deep conditioners from ipsy (and using them as daily conditioners for my damaged hair) but now that I have my Function of Beauty bespoke shampoo/conditioner, these have become a less-exciting, overall neutral item to receive. I’ll still pack this for travel!

February’s Ipsy bag was a little lackluster compared to other months. The bag was u-g-l-y, in my opinion, but better-constructed than others I’ve received. I see how most of the items in my bag match my profile & preferences – aside from the bronzer – but there was nothing that I was just super excited to try out. Everything is similar to products I already own – is this a sign that I should cut back on beauty boxes? Probably. Definitely not.

Luxie Rose Gold Blush Brush ($18) – I love getting brushes in my beauty boxes (which I believe I’ve said more than once…) and I’m even more excited to receive a full size rather than a travel brush. This is my third Luxie brush and I think they’re wonderful.

Elizabeth Mott “Whatup Beaches” Bronzer ($2.19) – What the heck is this tiny thing?? This is the one item that makes me scratch my head. I’ve told Ipsy that I don’t like bronzer/contour, so I’m not sure why – out of all this month’s options – I ended up with this sample. Now, little does Ipsy know, but I was actually happy to receive this sample because 1) I’m dabbling in contouring and 2) the name is so silly & cute to me. However, it is the SMALLEST sample ever, smaller than eyeshadow samples I’ve received.

Nyx Butter Lipstick in “Ripe Berry” ($6) – I just spent $40-ish at Nyx during their lipstick sale (I don’t have a problem) so while I may be on self-induced lipstick overload, I’m glad about this shade and that it’s a full-sized product.

Total Paid: $10

Total Retail Value: $35.64

Look how tiny this bronzer sample is. The head of my blush brush is much too large for it. I suppose I could use it as eyeshadow to avoid having tiger stripes on my cheeks?

Swatches of Nyx Butter Lipstick & Elizabeth Mott Bronzer

The retail value this month wasn’t as high as January’s, but at more than triple the cost of the bag, I’m still more than getting my money’s worth. My favorite item, the blush brush, is worth $18 on its own. I’m looking forward to seeing how my bag works out next month, having reminded them that I really, really truly do not want contour products.

I love Ipsy. I’ve mentioned trying to quit it before – I cancelled Sephora Play! & Birchbox & Benevolent Beauty & so many others, but there’s something about Ipsy that keeps drawing me back. I love the new quiz, the wide variety of beauty & skincare products, and the way it seems to truly be getting smarter about my preferences (yay algorithms? Machine learning?). Here are my Ipsy bags from the past three months!

The first three items come out to about $24, so without breaking down the cost of the samples I’ve already more than doubled what I spent on the bag! I passed down the lipstick – I already have so many reds – but kept & am using everything else. The brush has the silkiest bristles & I use the lip balm every day.

The December bag was fuzzy & fun. I received:

Mica Beauty Angle Eyeshadow Brush (RV $22.95, full-size) – Silky soft. I love receiving good quality brushes in my Ipsy bags because I never like forking over the money for them!

Benefit POREfessional Primer (RV $4.13) – I just don’t get Benefit samples. They’re so teeny tiny I can barely get a decent use out of any of them. I’ve received a few POREfessional samples over the years, and while I don’t think it’s bad, it isn’t my favorite primer and I can’t imagine paying full price, ever.

NYX Prismatic Shadow in Bedroom Eyes (RV $5.99, full-size) – I really wanted to like this eyeshadow. Nyx is my favorite drugstore brand, and it swatches beautifully (see below – that’s one swipe!) and I love the metallic bronze shade. However, on my eyes the metallic aspect blended out immediately so it just looked like any ordinary brown shadow & within a few hours it had creased even with eyeshadow primer.

Ciaté London Liquid Velvet in Pin Up (RV $5.79) – LOVE. Super love. The nude-berry shade is perfect, the formula is perfect, the pigment is perfect, the applicator is perfect. I would never have considered Ciaté beyond nail polish, but this liquid lip is so much better than I would’ve imagined. Definitely worth the $19 full-size price.

December’s bag retails for $41.85 – more than 4x the $10 a month subscription price!!

December’s liquid lip & eyeshadow swatches.

I got my January Ipsy in the mail today & oh my gosh it is so good! I’m thinking it’s my favorite Ipsy GlamBag ever. As a side note, I redeemed rewards points for the Lime Crime Velvetine in “Mercury”, a metallic lavender. I expected a sample, but received the full-size $20 product! Also, Ipsy has great customer service – they proactively emailed people that Lime Crime shades had been swapped during shipping, apologized for their mistake, and reimbursed everyone’s points (with an extra 75 added). However, I’m feeling #blessed because I was reimbursed & still received the shade I requested.

For the rest of my bag, I received:

Loverecipe Sheet Masks in Aloe & Acai Berry (RV $1.50 each, received 2) – I love sheet masks & this is my first time to get them in an Ipsy bag. They’re low value, but Ipsy sent out two!

Manna Kadar Paradise Pearlized Blush (RV $19, full-size) – I love Manna Kadar. This blush shade is a little intimidating for me considering it’s hot pink and pretty pigmented, but I don’t have anything like it in my collection.

Naked Cosmetics Pigment in Desert Sunset #02 (RV $14.99, full-size) – I don’t like loose pigments as a general rule, but the pigment on this powder is incredible. It’s such a beautiful rose gold/champagne & I cannot wait to use it as an eyeshadow and highlighter. Ipsy also suggested mixing it with lip balm for a funky rose gold lip, & if I’m feeling extra bold I may give that a try!

There’s something about Ipsy I just can’t quit. I love the process of picking which spoilers I could receive and anxiously awaiting GlamBag reveals. This month’s bag was SO FREAKING CUTE; it’s the cutest bag design I’ve gotten from Ipsy (though I’m sure my obsession with Halloween plays into that).

This month, my bag contents were almost perfect, too. My October GlamBag contained:

Tatcha One Step Camellia Cleansing Oil – I love double cleansing anytime I wear makeup, and I already know I like other Tatcha products. I’m always happy to get a sample of a $40+ cleanser so I don’t have to waste that chunk of money if it doesn’t work out.

Essence Waterproof Eyeliner Pen – I am overloaded on eyeliner pens right now, but I was fine with this one because it’s waterproof. However, the pen tip is so long I think it’s going to be hard to manipulate.

tre’Stique Matte Lip Crayon in Belize Bordeaux – I was skeptical of tre’Stique due to their name and packaging, but I’ve had good luck with their products so far & I am so glad I got the berry shade. It’s bright and fun and great for Fall.

Pur~Lisse Daily Lip Nourisher -This has the slightest hint of mango scent and isn’t sticky in the slightest. I’m wearing it right now & it feels great on – considering the rave reviews, I have pretty high expectations for this little guy. We’ll see how it goes.

First of all, I’d like to apologize for not being a photographer … at all. Most of these box photos were taken in the shade or at night and I’ve tried to manipulate them to make the labels somewhat legible. Frankly, I can’t believe I subscribed to EIGHT subscription boxes last month, excluding food boxes (like Home Chef and HelloFresh) and clothing boxes (like Le Tote). So without further ado, I present ….. My August Boxes.

BeautyDNA is a unique subscription for me in that it costs $25 per month to receive only one product (or try your first month for $15 by using that link!). However, the products are always full-size and are always worth more than the cost of the box. There is an incredibly detailed personalization quiz to define your beauty profile & skincare concerns. This month I receive the SimySkin Micro Exfoliating Toner (RV $40) and I have absolutely loved it. I use it every night before bed and am working up to using it morning and night (you have to ease into it because it’s 10% glycolic acid!). Check out the note they send explaining why they send each product:

I also want to mention that the first product I ever received from them (a daily facial moisturizer) broke me out. I emailed to cancel and also let customer service know the issue – I loved the idea and the surprise every month, but wasn’t willing to gamble $25 on one product that may be a complete miss. Not only did they cancel without asking any questions, they also sent me a completely new product (a vitamin-c serum) free of charge and an apology that their algorithm didn’t work the first time around. I was so impressed that I resubscribed, and I really enjoy the little surprise treat every month.

Benevolent Beauty Box was one of the first subscription boxes I ever signed up for. I bought a six month plan during their Mother’s Day Sale, so each box averages to about $15. The VIP boxes are $30 a month (this is what I have now) and include 4-7 full-size cruelty-free beauty products. The monthly mini boxes contain 2-3 full-size cruelty-free beauty products for $15-ish a month. Benevolent Beauty donates $1 per box sold to Humane Society International to help the fight against animal testing & cruelty.

Admittedly, I ended up gifting away almost the entire box this month. That’s because I’m on full-sized product overload, though, not due to lack of quality or value. This month’s box contained:

Bellapierre Vanilla Bean Lip Balm (RV $10) I’ve had good luck with Bellapierre, but own too many lip balms as it is, so anything that’s packaged in a pot or tub rather than a stick or tube is getting gifted away.

Nvey Eco Eyeshadow in Rose Quartz (RV $18) You could receive either Rose Quartz, Mahogany, or Mystique, and while I probably would’ve preferred either of those shades, I KEPT THIS! Lol. This was the one item I kept from this month’s box.

While August’s Benevolent Beauty Box was clearly not a hit for me personally, I still think the variety of product’s was great and that the items I can’t keep will make wonderful gifts. The lip stain is one of my go-to lip products, so there’s still a chance I’ll keep it for myself as a backup.

This was my last, probably ever, Birchbox. I cancel and resubscribe to plenty of boxes as my mood or budget or needs change each month, but I would say that Birchbox is one that is truly unimpressive. What does it have going for it? Well, it’s classic & it’s cheap. For $10 a month you get samples of makeup, skincare, and hair products. What does it have going against it? Sample sizes are tiny, they’ve eliminated the wonderful points system that made each box essentially $5, and the CEO has released multiple statements about how boring the subscription box industry is. I’ve cancelled my subscription and haven’t looked back. Here’s what my parting box contained:

MannaKadar Fantasy 3-in-1 Blush Highlighter Eyeshadow (RV $19?) I’m not sure about the retail value of this. The packaging is different than the one on the MannaKadar site, but it seems like it could be full-sized. As you can see, mine arrived completely shattered. I repaired it with rubbing alcohol, but it shattered again the next day. To their credit, Birchbox sent me a replacement. I love the color as a blush and eyeshadow, but have to be so, so careful because it wants to break.

Oribe Après Beach Wave and Shine Spray (RV $4.60) I love Oribe and am happy to try anything they put out. Though beachy wave sprays never work for me, this one’s added shine was nice & it didn’t make my hair feel filthy.

Benefit Goof Proof Brow Pencil (RV $2.40) This sample size was a joke. The shade was too warm for me but honestly I wouldn’t have cared about that if it had been easy to hold or use in any way. The pencil was too light and small and the amount of product made me nervous that it would only cover one eyebrow. I’ve never received a smaller sample of something in my life.

I also cashed in all of my points and used my birthday gift ($10 off any purchase of $50+) to really say “Adios!” to BB. I “purchased” (for free though, because of my points & discount) a new S’well bottle & clear Anastasia brow gel. I used the free mystery sample gift (with any $35+ purchase) and they sent me a teeny tiny Paula’s Choice Vitamin C Skin Booster sample. I’ve mixed it with my night cream & I like it, but I won’t get more than 3 uses out of it. My other free “sample” was a full-sized Mirenesse mascara. It has awful reviews, but I’m more than willing to try a new mascara for free. Also, you can see the replacement MannaKadar eyeshadow Birchbox sent me, which was unbroken. 🙂

Essence Beauty Box

The next box is Essence Beauty Box which, for the measly two months I subscribed to it, was wonderful. Essence Beauty Box was created and curated by Essence magazine for women of color, but it ended up being my favorite for beauty staples (like shaving gel and makeup remover) with a splash of fun beauty products. Unfortunately, Essence is discontinuing their beauty box, and the last box will be September’s.

Nudestix Lip & Cheek Dual Pencil in Mystic/Whisper (RV $24) Love the nude shades and the formula. I’ve used them as lipstick and cream blush & prefer them as lipstick.

Skin & Co Hand Cream in Umbrian Truffle and Citrus Amaro (RV $7.92) Haven’t opened these yet but I’m really looking forward to having them as the weather gets cooler.

SweetSpot On the Go Wipettes (RV $1.28) I LOVED THESE. Their ph-balanced feminine wipes which sounds so… not fun, but I keep them in my gym bag to use as an all-over wipe if I have to head straight to the office after a mild workout. Each scent was awesome and I definitely want to keep buying them.

Glossybox markets themselves as a luxury beauty box for $21 a month. They send 5 niche, high-end, or emerging brands in the form of deluxe samples or full-sized products. I received a buy one, get two free promotion so I haven’t come close to trying all of these products yet. I will list them out, but really can’t give item by item reviews yet.

This was my official August Glossybox. I think it had a decent variety of products that I wouldn’t normally get to try, so I’m satisfied – the two bonus boxes are a heck of an add-on, though! I received:

De Bruyere After Sun Lotion (RV $12.36) I gave this to my mom to try, but now I wish I hadn’t. I want something pretty & French sitting on my bathroom shelf, lol.

If you want to try Glossybox out, click that link and use code SUNSET at checkout to receive a free mystery box along with your first box! Here are my two bonus boxes, the first from May 2016 and the second from December 2015.

Ipsy really runs the gamut with its offerings, from drugstore to high-end and everything in between. It’s customizable, and every month your selections will (arguably) become more & more accurate as you review the products & brands you like vs. dislike. In August I received an extra item, the Pixi Glow Tonic, as a points reward. I also received:

Nyx Liquid Illuminator in Gleam (RV $6.53) I contacted CS about the shade, as it was too dark for my skintone, and they sent me the appropriate shade in Sunbeam. While you can’t complain to CS about simply disliking a product to try, if something is blatantly wrong for your skintone or if something is broken or missing, they are extremely quick to remedy the situation.

Look at this cutesy packaging! Sephora Play can be frustrating because there’s a waitlist with no real end. I was on it for months and never received notification that the sign ups were open, but I heard on Reddit that people were able to sign up and gave it a whirl — it worked! You kind of just have to hope for the best and hurry to try to sign up when you hear that it’s open again. August’s focus was all about eyes.

So, that’s it! Those are all of the regularly scheduled beauty boxes. I have others, like FabFitFun (which is seasonal) and Julep (which may well be my favorite box of all, but I happened to skip August), and I’ll be sure to post whenever they arrive. But I hope this covers everything you could possibly hope to know about my August boxes.

I am trying out using affiliate links, which means that I may earn a tiny commission if you click on a link or make a purchase through a link posted here - thanks Mom! As usual, I will never, ever praise a product I don't actually believe in.